January 25, 2012

There's a notion known as the lemon law which has to do with the reimbursement for recently-purchased vehicles that fail to meet certain standards. A hilarious episode of the sitcom How I Met Your Mother centered on the idea of applying the law to dating--you don't like your blind date after five minutes? No problem, the date's off, your night is saved! I submit that we should also be able to apply it to an ordered meal.

Why not? If the food is gross or far from what I anticipated and I'm not able to choke it down, should I be forced to pay for it? Probably. Definitely. But that's just something to consider.

Working in a bakery means I've tried many, many types of muffins, and I'll state with confidence that these are the most cake-like I've ever had. Their texture is delicate and as fluffy as a down pillow, and each bite just dissolves in the mouth. Plus, they're adequately sweet without being a sugar-rush source. The simplest of all crumb toppings (three basic ingredients!) just contributes to the magic, adding a buttery richness and textural contrast all at once. The lemon flavor is bright and the overall effect is an enjoyable one.

Bonus: You can make the batter and topping ahead of time and keep it in the fridge for days, nay, weeks! Look somewhere else for a fiber-filled, nutritious, and minimally tasty muffin, my friends. This is dessert for breakfast, and the lemon law need not be applied.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, combine the eggs, sour cream, butter, lemon peel and juice. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups three-fourths full.
In a small bowl, combine flour and sugar; cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over batter.
Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

A muffin with any kind of crumb topping speaks to my soul. These lemon ones (especially with your glorious description) sound fantastic! And I, for one, would love to see the lemon-law applied to facets of life.

If I had some sour cream I would get up off my chair and make these right now. Seriously...three of my favorite things 1) lemon 2) sour cream in baked goods 3) streusel. Wow...pinning this one and I WILL be making these soon.

As usual your creative photos reeled me in. You've captured the texture so well, and that decapitated muffin is amazing. I will definitely be making these because I love anything with lemon and I LOVE a cupcake disguised as a muffin.